Advanced Blackjack Surrender Strategy

One thing that is available in some of the Blackjack variants is called a Surrender move, this enables the player to cut his/her losses. If used appropriately it can definitely work to the player’s advantage and help them to increase the average return. The move functions are as follows, after the beginning cards are dealt to the player and the dealer has checked for a blackjack, the player can then Surrender his/her hand without making any other move only loosing half of their bet. There are some situations that are not advantageous for the player and it is better that they giving up half of their wager upfront rather than risking it all and loosing it.

Separate from the cards being dealt, the following determinants affect the Blackjack surrender strategy. These stem from whether the game is being played with a single deck or with multiple decks and whether the dealer stands on soft 17 or hits on soft 17. This increases to four combinations and advanced surrender strategies that are different for each combination.

Single Deck, Dealer Stands on Soft 17

There are three instances when the player should always keep in mind to surrender. When the player has a hand value of 16 from the two dealt cards and the dealer has an Ace or 10 value card the player should surrender. With the dealer cards if the player has a hand value of 15 or less it is more advantageous to hit and try and make that hand value higher. If the player has a hand value of 17 or more then they should stand and see if the dealer is going to bust. The third most common occasion is when the player has a pair of 7’s and the dealer has a 10 value card.

Single Deck, Dealer Hits on Soft 17

This one is a more powerful position for the dealer and for that reason the player will surrender more often. The player will most likely surrender with a hand value of 15, 16 or 17 when the dealer has an Ace. They will surrender with a hand value of 16 when the dealer has a 10 value card. Also they will surrender when they have a pair of 7’s and the dealer has a 10 value card or an ace.

Multiple Decks, Dealer Stands on Soft 17

In this instance the player should surrender if they have a hand value of 15 and the dealer has a 10 value card or if they have a hand value of 16 and the dealer has a 9, 10 value card or an Ace. The player should never surrender with a pair of sevens.

Multiple Decks, Dealer Hits on Soft 17

The player’s tend to surrender most often with this combination. They surrender when they have a hand value of 15 and the dealer has a 10 value card or an Ace, when they have a hand value of 16 and the dealer has a 9, a 10 value card or an Ace and when they have a hand value of 17 and the dealer has an Ace. Last but not least the player should also consider surrendering when they have a pair of 8’s and the dealer has an Ace.

With there being two issues that the player needs to keep in mind at all times with regards to the advanced Blackjack Surrender Strategy. This strategy is a mathematical strategy that has been created through computer imitation. Experts do recommend a separate strategy for the Blackjack games that are played with two decks; it works more often than not.